Laguna Driftmaster Problem

[Pat Moy]

I have the Driftmaster mounted on my Laguna LT18 for a few months, and have been fairly happy with it. That is until today when I tried to change blade. The crank that controls micro adjustment doesn't allow the bottom door to open completely, which made it almost impossible to get the blade out without damage. I called Laguna customer support. The person I spoke to was very helpful, but the only suggestion he had was to tilt the fence to create enough clearance to allow the door to open. Then tilt back to 90 degrees after the new blade is installed. What a hassle.

Laguna claims that the driftmaster will fit most competitor bandsaws. Before making that claim, I think they should make the driftmaster fit a bit better with their own products. I think anyone who's considering buying a driftmaster should investigate this potential problem before pulling the trigger. I hope Laguna comes up with a fix soon.

[Mike Goetzke]

I don't have one but think I read the crank can be mover to the other side to aid in blade removal.

[Joe Jensen]

When I called them about this they suggested spacers to lift the table up another 1.5" so the door will clear the handle. I didn't want to take my saw from 13" to 11.5" of cutting depth. Also, on my 21" Felder, the best I could get was about 14" or rip with, way less than the stock fence because the chrome bars on the Laguna fence are sized for a 16" saw. I returned mine...joe

[Rick Markham]

Just swap the micro adjust crank to the other side of the fence. Took me all of two minutes to do, totally worth it! Fixes the problem entirely!!!! :D

[Jeff Willard]

I just take the door off.

[Rick Fisher]

I was lucky, mine clears .. I love that fence.. Had a buddy over to cut some maple for him.. I showed him how it adjusted for drift, back and forth.. he was amazed..

Then he asked what drift was ..

Anyway.. I love the fence..

[Joe Jensen]

Just swap the micro adjust crank to the other side of the fence. Took me all of two minutes to do, totally worth it! Fixes the problem entirely!!!! :D

Mine was at the spine side of the saw. I'm pretty sure I would still have both problems with the crank at the other side of table. Can you explain what that would fix?

[Andrew Duncan]

I'm like Jeff, I just remove the lower door when it's time for a change. In fact, I mounted a handle on the hinge side to make it easy to lift the door out of the hinge. My case also would not have been helped by moving the crank.

[Pat Moy]

I tried moving the crank to the other side as suggested by Rick and Mike. It solved the door-clearance problem. But if I use the existing mounting holes on the LT18, there's no way to get the fence closed enough to the blade to make a thin cut (The closest I can get the fence to the blade is around 1 inch). The only way to get the setup to work is by drilling an additional hole into the table for re-mounting one of the universal brackets, which I will do.

For a fence that list for closed to $400, I really expected a seamless fit into one of there own saws. Having to use the universal brackets was already a bit unexpected. Having to drill an additional hole into the table is really disappointing.

Since the Laguna installation instruction calls for mounting the crank on the left side, they either weren't aware of the door-clearance problem, or chose to ignore it. And to not have a workable solution (e.g., moving the crank to the other side) at the tip of their tongue when customers call shows the company's priority regarding after-sale support (But the customer-support reps are always very nice and courteous! They do try to help.).

By the way, removing the door on the LT18 is not a convenient workable solution. On the LT18, the top and bottom doors are connected so that when you open one, the other opens along with it. Door removal requires unbolting 8 allen-head bolts and disconnecting a ground wire.

[Rick Markham]

Pat, the most frustrating thing about that fence is the instructions (or complete Lack there of) Before you go drilling another hole, there is another person on this board (who posted recently) their own mounting they made. I will do a quick search when I get a moment and see if I can find it for you. Sorry I don't have the time at the moment! I feel your frustration, at the price of the fence it should come with much better instructions, especially ones that for Laguna saws! After you get it set up, it is the best fence! Getting it set up can be a real hassle for some folks though ;)

[Rick Markham]

Didn't take me very long to find it. Check out what Leigh did, Maybe there is a little inspiration here, to help ya solve your problem without drilling another hole in you saw apron. Ya might still have too, but hopefully you can come up with something (I hate drilling more holes in my machine tops, if I don't have too) Post some pics, and maybe the collective hive can help ya solve your problem ;)

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=140585&highlight=Driftmaster

[Pat Moy]

Thanks Rick. Please post if you find the thread, and I'll look as well. I agree with your comment regarding fence performance. I actually had it set up and used it for a few months with no problems until I decided to replace the installed bi-metal blade with to a Lenox carbide blade. That's when the pain started.

[Pat Moy]

Rick, thanks for posting. Looks like he replaced the universal brackets with a 1/2" aluminum plate. Post says he still had to drill and tap the table.

If I want this to work, I don't see a way around having to drill. If I drill, I think I'll do a tap as well.

[Brendan Plavis]

I dont know how you plan to do it, but an alternative could be to either use a helluva lot of solder... or you could tack weld it on, then you dont have to add a hole, and if you ever go to take it off, then all you need to do is grind down the weld(if you do it right, once you do that, it will be free to drop...) That way if you ever sell it, then it doesnt lose alot of its value... all you would have to do is remove the paint fromt he area where the tacks will be added....

[Pat Moy]

Success without drilling. I got everything to work by bolting one of the universal brackets to the table through the slot on the bracket instead of through the mounting hole (see photos). Moving the crank to the right side is what really did it. Thanks everyone for your comments.

http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn98/ptmoyfb/misc/driftmaster.jpg

http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn98/ptmoyfb/misc/UMounts.jpg

[Rick Markham]

I had faith in ya Pat! It just takes a little finnagling to get it just right ;)

[Pat Moy]

Rick, couldn't have done it without your post. Thanks again.

[Rick Markham]

No worries Pat, I was just recently enlightened to switching the handle to the otherside, Just passing along what was so freely shared with me ;)

[Scot Ferraro]

The DriftMaster does not clear the older saws -- the solution is to tilt the table when opening the door -- it is an extra step, but not that big of a deal...tilting the table allows plenty of clearance. On the new saws I do not think that this is a big deal. I like my DM so much that it is worth the workaround IMHO...much less tedious than trying to adjust the older style fence for blade drift.